Frame lock help and questions

DCL Knives

DCL Knives

Joined
Jun 6, 2012
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I tried looking for most of this but have found little so please forgive me for the bombardment of questions ;) so thanks for all your help in advance

I want to try making my first ti frame lock sometime soon. I'm sure ill mess some things up on the way but you never learn if you don't try :D

So I need you guys help with a couple things:

-best way to cut the lockbar without a mill (I have drill press, porta-band, and Dremel)
-how to line up the detent hole and ball
-how to get pivot, stop pin, and stand-offs to correct size (I tried this before and had a lot of trouble.)
-I have a pretty cheap drill press, will a reamer work to get my hole for my pivot good enough

I'm assuming you can't use ball bearings without a mill, but I really have no idea and don't want to get into that anyways...

I'm planning on using .1 Ti and .125 precision ground stock. Here is what I'm thinking so far. Any other advise or tips would be great. Thanks for all your help!

Drew
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Let's see if I can get this going for you. Did you make a full size working pattern yet? Very important as far as I'm concerned when I start a new one. Drill the pivot hole the size you intend to use. Where you have a "screw" marked should be a pin, and you can cut the leaf spring free hand with a rotary tool and those cutting discs.You can place a block of wood in a vice thats say 1 1/2" wide and say have it out one end 5" now clamp your liner to br cut on it. You will now have both hands to guide and control your rotarty tool. Expect to go slow and I'm sure this will work for you. Also cut it just a wee bit long inb thge front end. Sizing this down to the right length will be a major important job. Frank
 
Frank Niro said:
Let's see if I can get this going for you. Did you make a full size working pattern yet? Very important as far as I'm concerned when I start a new one. Drill the pivot hole the size you intend to use. Where you have a "screw" marked should be a pin, and you can cut the leaf spring free hand with a rotary tool and those cutting discs.You can place a block of wood in a vice thats say 1 1/2" wide and say have it out one end 5" now clamp your liner to br cut on it. You will now have both hands to guide and control your rotarty tool. Expect to go slow and I'm sure this will work for you. Also cut it just a wee bit long inb thge front end. Sizing this down to the right length will be a major important job. Frank
Click to expand...

Thanks Frank, could I use a pivot there as well or should it a integral stop pin? Still need to make a pattern, do you have any suggestion what material to use?
 
You can cut the lock bar with your drill press and dremel cut off wheels,also on yopur pattern if you put the stop pin at the top your knife won't close.
Yes you can use a pivot for your stop pin,I do on frame locks.
paint sticks will make a good prototype.
Alway drill undersize and ream.You can do it on your drill press.
To get pivots and spacers to lenght,lap them on a flat surface.To make a quick and dirty lap,take a pice of flat bar cut it about 2" long.Drill and ream a hole in it to fit your pivot and back spacers.Use that to lap the pivot and back spacer.

Stan
 
Thanks for the reply Stan! Good catch with the stop pin:o Planning to do a pattern in some plexiglass, we'll see how that goes! :D
 
I use that thin counter to material we use to know it as arborite or --? It is hard and you can easily trace aroun d it when shaped and water doesn't bother it. Frank
 
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